Selected by the U.S. Department of Defense, the company was ranked No. 2 on the list, according to a news release from the Pasco Economic Development Council, a public/private partnership that works to lure new businesses and assist established firms.

"We are thrilled to see that Dais continues to receive this kind of high-level recognition," said John Hagen, Pasco EDC president and chief executive. "Dais has been our 'poster child' for the kind of innovative economic development we want to encourage in Pasco County."

Hagen went on to note that Pasco EDC has been working with Dais Analytic Corp. since April 2009 to assist the company's growth. "They have received a lot of assistance," he said of the company, which opened in Pasco in the late '90s. Last year, Pasco County commissioners approved a $254,000 grant for Dais Analytic to aid in its development of a new generation of energy-efficient, environmentally friendly heating, cooling and refrigeration products called "NanoAir." The county grant will enable the company to hire additional employees.

In addition, Pasco EDC has provided help with training, job placement, consulting services, local government support, and financial and investor opportunities. Hagen noted that he anticipates continued work with Dais to enhance technology and supplier partnerships.

"We are really proud to see Dais recognized for their energy efforts, not only in our community but nationally as well," Pasco County Commission Chairwoman Ann Hildebrand said. "To see them listed in a "Top 12 Companies to Watch" in Forbes magazine really validates what we are doing to help companies like Dais continue to make progress."

The Defense Department has 300,000 buildings and an annual energy bill that amounts to $4 billion, and it faces a government mandate to improve sustainability.

Winners will be used for its installation energy test bed. Some were from large companies such as Honeywell, Forbes said. But some smaller firms, such as Dais, also fared well. The magazine chose 12 from the 27 that it says appear to be the most promising.

In 2009, the firm announced a deal to sell its air filtration system to China, an agreement it said would bring 1,000 jobs to Pasco over the next five years. The deal also calls for developing a prototype wastewater treatment plant in northern China that would use Dais' products to clean polluted water.

Dais was one of only six firms to split a $9.6 million award from the Energy Department for projects focused on improving energy efficiency in buildings.

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Project leaders

For more information about energy projects that won the Defense Department's competition, visit www.serdp-estcp.org and click on Featured Initiatives.